December has arrived!
The weather in Wisconsin has turned from chilly to cold and nothing says warmth like a big bowl of hot soup.
This Apple Chicken & Vegetable is the perfect combination of healthy, flavorful and effortless eats!
A one pot meal that can be made to serve, travel in a thermal lunchbox or whip it up the night before competition to take on the road.
The best thing about this recipe is how versatile it can be! Mix and match different veggies to create some fun in the kitchen and let dancers help decide their favorite combos!
I personally love the broccoli, carrot and mushroom myself. These veggies are high in fiber, protein, immune boosting vitamins and known to help prevent illness. Perfect for this time of year with cold and flu season upon us.
However, if your dancer is opposed to a certain vegetable you can always substitute or leave it out all together.
(Though I do encourage dancers to try new FOODS!)
The base of this tasty creation is a healthy bone broth. Rich in minerals that have been known to increase overall bone health and support joint wellness. Two things that every dancer requires!
Last ingredient is the tasty Apple Chicken sausage.
I found these fully cooked links at Aldi and I have used them in MULTIPLE recipes. They are perfect for quick meals because there’s no cooking involved, just warming and serving 🙂
I sliced them into coins and browned them in the pot FIRST, adding flavor to the soup from the fond that remains in the pan after searing.
Another flavor secret to this soup is a tablespoon of Better than Bouillon. This brand stocks a variety of flavors and is also a pantry staple in my kitchen!
Recipe Below:
Ingredients:
-Two 32 oz cartons True Goodness Organic Bone Broth
-2 tablespoons Olive oil
-2 tablespoons All-purpose Flour
-2 tablespoons unsalted Butter
-1 cup diced sweet Onions
-1 cup coined baby Carrots
-1 tablespoon minced Garlic
-1 cup sliced Mushrooms
-1 cup chopped Broccoli florets
-1 package Never Any! Apple Chicken Sausage
-1 tablespoon each Salt, Pepper and All Spice
-2-3 sprigs fresh Rosemary
-1 tablespoon Chicken flavored Better than Bouillon
Instructions:
For this recipe I used a medium sized Dutch oven, but you can use any medium to large sized stock pot you own.
TIP: Prep all ingredients BEFORE you start cooking. Slice, dice, mince and chop everything to help make the cooking process easy and effortless.
Place Dutch oven on the stove and heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat.
Add the coined chicken sausage to the pot and brown for 5-7 minutes. Remove from the pot and set aside.
Next, add another drizzle of olive oil if needed, then add the diced onions and carrots. Saute for 7-9 minutes, until the onions are translucent and the carrots are soft.
Add the sliced mushrooms and continue cooking an additional 5 minutes. The garlic goes in last and only cooks 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
Now its time to make the roux!
Add the 2 tablespoons of butter to the vegetables and melt completely. Then add the 2 tablespoons of flour and combine with butter coating all ingredients.
Once all veggies are coated and flour has completely combine with butter, slowly pour in the bone broth, just a cup or so at first, into the pot. Using a spoon scrap the bottom of the pan, releasing the fond and increasing the FLAVOR!
Add the rest of the bone broth, browned chicken sausage, chopped broccoli florets, salt, pepper, all spice, sprigs of rosemary and 1 tablespoon Chicken Better than Bouillon to the pot.
Simmer the soup over low-medium heat for 25-30 minutes, continuing to occasionally stir ingredients. Remove soup from the heat and serve or place in a thermal lunchbox immediately to keep temperature.
Hope you enjoy!
